


once more

by agaave



Category: Original Work
Genre: 2am on the beach is the perfect time to process your childhood trauma, Beaches, Hurt/Comfort, Late Night Conversations, M/M, but the fic we deserved, not the kissfic that was promised
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-15
Updated: 2020-03-15
Packaged: 2021-03-01 00:48:16
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 606
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23156575
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/agaave/pseuds/agaave
Summary: The beach reminds Fauldren of where his parents left him.
Relationships: Capella/Fauldren (original characters)
Kudos: 1





	once more

Fauldren could taste the tang of the salty sea air on his lips, the gentle lull and crash of waves on the shore below ordinarily the perfect lullaby to fall asleep to.

But he didn't feel the inclination to sleep just yet, despite the pull of exhaustion in his limbs. Instead, he sat on one of the woven chairs outside, one knee tucked up under his chin, a thin blanket around his shoulders. Even at night, the weather was more than warm enough that he could get away with wearing nothing more than a thin nightshirt, but Fauldren wasn't as yet comfortable coming outside in such scant clothing, though no one was awake to see him.

One person was awake to see him.

A pair of strong arms encircled him from behind, hands skimming down his chest as Capella leaned into the embrace, their chin resting on Fauldren's shoulder. Their actions were sluggish with drowsiness, just a fraction more weight than normal resting on Fauldren's shoulders. He reached up, touching Capella's cheek in acknowledgment before turning his head to kiss them.

"I didn't know you were awake," he said, his voice barely audible over the waves.

"I wasn't," Capella yawned, burying their face in the curve of Fauldren's neck, "The other side of the bed was cold, and I missed you."

Fauldren felt a ridiculous sense of pleasure curling in his stomach at that. Loving that Capella would miss him, even while asleep.

"Why are we up?" Capella said, and the reason for their usage of _we_ did not escape him. It lay between them, open for Fauldren to take it if he wanted.

"I was," he began, his fingers tightening on the arms of the chair, "thinking about my parents."

Capella shifted slightly, but didn't pull away. Their breathing changed, their earlier sleepiness fading into tension.

Fauldren watched the waves tumble onto the sand, pitch-black with only the faint light of the half-moon to illuminate them. He wondered if his parents shared the same view. Whether they thought to enjoy it, wherever they were.

"They did everything to make sure that I did well," he said, after a moment. "But they never really thought about whether I was _happy._ I suppose they thought that success was its own joy. I was a very good duke."

An impeccable host, a balanced and fair mediator, a refined lord of noble tastes. And now, sitting on the beach with his hair unbrushed and sand sticking to his legs and feet. As he was now, they would consider him an utter failure.

"I thought that the faith they had in me was the same thing as love. Wanting the person you love to do well, it seems like it should be. It seems correct. Isn't that foolish?"

"It's not foolish to want the most of what you have," Capella said, and Fauldren smiled, part wry and more affectionate. "To assume that your parents were giving you the most of their love."

"I know," Fauldren said, and it surprised him that he believed it. It surprised him more than the realization didn't bother him. He wasn't guilty, or ashamed, or embarrassed.

He pushed at Capella's arms, and they released him immediately, stepping back as he stood. Fauldren pushed the chair aside, coming to press himself into Capella's embrace again, his cheek on their bare chest.

Capella was warm and solid, their arms bracketing him in like a shield from the rest of the world. Fauldren stayed like that for a while, the sound of the ocean on one side and Capella's steady heartbeat on the other.

"Let's go to bed."


End file.
